By Luvuyo Mjekula
Breastfeeding mothers in all their diversity will be celebrated throughout their breastfeeding journeys while showcasing the ways families, societies, communities and health workers can have the back of every breastfeeding mum.
This is a joint message from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and various other concerned groups.
The message was also shared during a breastfeeding awareness event in Makhanda yesterday (Thursday) to mark the start of World Breastfeeding Week (1-7 August).
World Breastfeeding Week is held in the first week of August every year, supported by WHO, Unicef and many ministries of health and civil society partners. This year the theme is ‘Closing the gap: Breastfeeding support for all’.
The Settlers Day Hospital in Makhanda held a breastfeeding awareness day on Thursday, hosting a number of breastfeeding mothers, both young and old, as well as grandmothers, fathers and grandfathers.
Health professionals reminded the mothers of the importance of breastmilk and called on their families and communities to support them.
The South African Red Cross Society supported the event by providing soup and bread to the attendees.
Settlers Day Hospital manager Fundiswa Mzananda, declared: “The whole week we educate mothers about the importance of breastfeeding and its nutrients.”
Mzananda explained that the hospital has the Mother-and-Child stream led by sisters Thozama Onceya and Babalwa Noga-Pumane and the Makana health sub-district’s Intergrated Nutrition Programme led by Phumla Hermans.
They also ensured fathers and other older people were part of the awareness programme. “We don’t focus on breastfeeding mothers alone, we also focus on fathers as partners, we focus on grandmothers and grandfathers because when young poeople get children, the elderly get involved. We want to bring attention to fathers, ‘you have a responsibility to contribute to breastfeeding because breastmilk has nutrients protecting a child from all sorts of diseases’,” Mzananda stated.
Another health professional, Phumla Hermans, from the Makana sub-health district’s Integrated Nutrition Programme, said they were asking we mothers to breastfeed exclusively for the first six weeks. “Even water is not necessary because breastmilk has water.”
Reiterating the call to close the gap in the breastfeeding process, Hermans said the objective was that mothers should be assisted. “Breastfeeding is for all [people]. Mothers need help to breastfeed.”
She urged mothers to store breastmilk in the fridge and this would make sure it is kept for months. She praised Settlers Day Hospital for taking the lead in the campaign. “Settlers has shown us the way, they have started on the first day. We will follow suit and go to all the other clinics in Makana and Port Alfred.”
Sister Babalwa Noga-Pumane from the Mother-and-Child stream, said referred to a WHO report that depicted a drop in the rate of breastfeeding across the globe. Noga-Pumane was, however, adament the culture of breastfeeding would not die down. “Breastfeeding is not out of fashion,” she said.
Thozama Onceya, a colleague of Noga-Pumane placed emphasis on the health benefits of breastmilk.
“[Babies] get protection from various illnesses,” Onceya said.
The health professionals made a point of alerting the mothers of potential dangers to their babies and to themselves if they took harmful substances such as alcohol and tobacco or partook in unsafe sex while breastfeeding.
Incidentally, the start of the World Breastfeeding Week coincided with the beginning of another significant celebration in South Africa – National Women’s Month. During Women’s Month, South Africa pays tribute to more than 20 000 women who marched to the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956 in protest against the extension of Pass Laws to women. In the month, women are celebrated as active agents of change and social transformation.
